SMS CLassic preamp + Mesa Stereo 50 poweramp + Eminence Commonwealth 1x12 = impossible to create a bad sound. It likes the Jerry thin very much, but with distortion and compression it will veer a long way towards Trey

I totally agree. I have a 2x12 JBL e120 cab, a JBL k110 2x10 and a 1x12 k120. the K120 is what I like to use most. I also have the commonwealths loose right now but I used them for 6 months in a 2x12 and loved them. I still do. I like the mids and upper low end they add to the mix, actually something that is usually missing from JBl's at low volumes. But even with that slight difference, they sound almost identical to the JBLs and do the Jerry thing really well. They sound sweeter than the e120's IMO and the overdrive/distortion is much sweeter than the e120, prolly closer to an alnico k120 in that respect even though they are ceramic speakers. I think Eminence tried to embody the JBL sound but also sweetened the speaker to be better suited for guitar. That would be my guess....anyway, They are really good speakers.

JonnyBoy wrote:I totally agree. I have a 2x12 JBL e120 cab, a JBL k110 2x10 and a 1x12 k120. the K120 is what I like to use most. I also have the commonwealths loose right now but I used them for 6 months in a 2x12 and loved them. I still do. I like the mids and upper low end they add to the mix, actually something that is usually missing from JBl's at low volumes. But even with that slight difference, they sound almost identical to the JBLs and do the Jerry thing really well. They sound sweeter than the e120's IMO and the overdrive/distortion is much sweeter than the e120, prolly closer to an alnico k120 in that respect even though they are ceramic speakers. I think Eminence tried to embody the JBL sound but also sweetened the speaker to be better suited for guitar. That would be my guess....anyway, They are really good speakers.

I'd have to agree with you here, especially on the distortion. I use a Hermida Zen Drive in front of the preamp, and it sounds VERY sweet! Also, the upper=bass hump you mention blends well with the zero-bass Jerry preamp settings, keeps the preamp from sounding too hard. Eminence was definitely going for a JBL thing with the Commonwealth, but unlike the Weber California it allows for warm overdrive. My only complaint would be that heavier overdrive settings tend to sound muddy unless you put a compressor in front of it. Overall, I really love the sound. The Mesa is a far cry from a Macintosh, but has some of the over-engineered hi-hi qualities of the Mac, pretty transparent. It came with JJ KT77 tubes, which IMHO lack the clean glassiness of the 6l6's, but that will be corrected shortly.

ZenNoodles wrote:SMS CLassic preamp + Mesa Stereo 50 poweramp + Eminence Commonwealth 1x12 = impossible to create a bad sound. It likes the Jerry thin very much, but with distortion and compression it will veer a long way towards Trey

Happy Happy, Joy Joy

The SMS is one of the better Fender front-ends out there and can do it all. Considering Trey's use of the Deluxe Reverb, I would think that adding a compressor, TS-808 and the right speakers would get you pretty close. Brad Sarno delivered an SMS to Trey and he used it at the Phish show on 06/18/2009. Check it out to hear it in action. I haven't a clue of the actual signal path but the SMS was used as the preamp for at least part of the show (although I do not know for which specific songs it was used). I would imagine some careful listening would reveal that. I recorded the show but never seeded it - I would be happy to set you up with a copy if you do not have it (Schoeps cmc6/mk4 -> E.A.A PSP-2 -> Sonic AD2K+ -> Tascam HD-P2).